Florida School Boards Association
With two weeks of computerized writing tests in the rearview mirror, Florida’s superintendents are taking a closer look at what went wrong — and what it means. They’re more concerned than ever that the results will be tainted. In a draft document circulating through district offices, the Florida Association for District School Superintendents raises six…
Finland’s classrooms are very different from America’s — far more permissive, with less of an emphasis on academics. There are no standardized tests until high school, and children get 15 minutes of recess in between lessons — more than an hour of recess a day. “Play is important,” one Finnish teacher told the Smithsonian magazine. “We value play.” Yet Finnish kids always get…
TALLAHASSEE — Kameela Russell’s daughter acted out at her neighborhood school, Madie Ives Elementary in northeast Miami-Dade. But she excelled after transferring to the top-ranked Lakeside Elementary in Broward County. Most parents would not have been able to move their child to a public school in another county. Russell could because she was a teacher…
When it comes to spending on classroom technology, the Florida Senate has led the charge in recent years. Senate Education Committee chairman John Legg has held symposiums and school tours, aimed at drumming up support for more money for digital instruction. The effort landed $40 million last year. But when the Senate’s education budget proposal…
A day after the Florida House unanimously backed a bill to reduce state-mandated student testing, the Senate took a whack at the hotly debated topic. The measure that emerged Thursday from the Senate Education Appropriations subcommittee (SB 616) included the same goal of reducing the state’s emphasis on tests. But it differed from the House…
One week after clearing two education panels, the full state House got its first glimpse at a proposal to reduce the number of tests Florida public school students take each year. House Bill 7069 appears to have broad support, clearing both House education panels unanimously last week. On Tuesday, House members were given a chance…
TAMPA — Semiretired builder Jerry Tetro put a son through the University of Florida on a prepaid college plan a dozen years ago. Now, the grandkids stand to benefit from the same program. “To me, it makes a heck of a lot of sense,” said Tetro, from the Seminole. “It’s a great program.” The grandchildren…
School districts would have to share local school construction and maintenance money with charter schools, according to an amendment filed by an influential state senator. Sen. Don Gaetz, former Senate president, filed the amendment Tuesday. The amendment would require half of the money raised by an optional local property tax to be split between charter…
House budget writers unveiled an education spending plan Monday that would provide public schools with almost $47 less per student than Gov. Rick Scott proposed, and a key senator said his chamber was also unlikely to meet the governor’s number when a Senate blueprint is released Tuesday. The two developments cast increasing doubt on one…
Worried the late Labor Day this year won’t leave enough time for school districts to finish their Fall curriculum, Florida lawmakers seek to tweak a law so schools can get an early jump on the school year. School districts can open no later than 14 days before Labor Day, but this year, the holiday falls…